'' is a
Comedy Television Show on
Comedy Central . It debuted in
2003 .
''Reno 911!'' is in some respects a
Parody of the long-running television show ''
COPS ''. The show features the fictional members of a
Washoe County, Nevada Sheriff 's department (based in
Reno ), who are videotaped during the course of their duties, sometimes addressing the camera directly as though being interviewed. The joke, of course, is that they are terrible cops who cheat, lie, drink, steal, plant evidence, brutalize citizens and display general incompetence at their jobs. The force also has problems with
Racism , unrequited attractions,
Promiscuity , passive-aggressive feuds, drug use, and other dysfunctional troubles that supply a lot of the show's humor. It was nominated as Outstanding Comedy Series at the 2004
GLAAD Media Awards .
Only the basic narrative elements of the show are scripted, with the dialogue
Improvised . This enhances the illusion of
Reality . This is called "
Retroscripting ".
On
March 21 ,
2004 , Comedy Central ran a special of the show entitled ''Reno 911!: Off Duty''.
The series has concluded its third season and according to
TVShowsOnDVD.com , its DVD is to be released on July 11, 2006. A promo for the fourth season has been aired.
The show is filmed almost entirely in
Southern California , not Reno.
- Carlos Alazraqui as , a Racist , Sexist , miserable second-generation (at least) Mexican-American . He is usually partnered with Deputy Jones, and they have an oddly healthy working relationship, despite Jones being Black and Garcia a racist.
- Mary Birdsong as new (3rd season) , an efficient rookie cop that no one seems to know anything about, although they suspect that she is a Lesbian .
- Robert Ben Garant as , a Trailer Trash Redneck who likes Beer , Firearms , Lynyrd Skynyrd , and perhaps most of all, his mustache. He trains police dogs for the department and is almost never seen without his trademark sunglasses and bulletproof vest, which is always outside of his shirt. He also has very bad vision. Junior often performs the functions the other officers are unwilling to do. He also has a Running Gag in which he pulls over a driver, and as he approaches the vehicle, he gets knocked out or is otherwise rendered incapacitated by the car door opening or something falling off the car.
- Kerri Kenney-Silver as , an emotionally unstable, heavily medicated Hypochondriac , with multiple Psychological disorders. She is a generally odd, slow-witted officer with low self esteem and a special love for cats (she owns over eight; one named "Tigger" is dead and stuffed). She also enjoys crafts, and is infatuated with Lieutenant Jim Dangle. She generally distracts the other officers with her flakiness. She frequently visits her mother's grave to have one-sided conversations with her, even planning picnics in which she brings two lunches. She began dating a man named Craig Pullin, who turned out to be a Serial Killer , and then continued the relationship even after his conviction.
- Thomas Lennon as , a bisexual cop who is always seen wearing his trademark short shorts, no matter how formal the occasion may be. Everyone assumed he was homosexual until an episode when Dangle's formerly Obese wife visited Reno in order to finally get a divorce. His sexual preference is often alluded to but usually goes unmentioned. Dangle is also the subject of a running gag in which his police bicycle is stolen or Vandalized after walking away from it for only a minute. It is hinted that Travis Junior is responsible for at least some of these bicycle incidents.
- Wendi McLendon-Covey as , a Promiscuous , blonde female officer. She always wears her uniform unbuttoned to expose her cleavage. Also she is known as an ex-magician's assistant, Wicca n, Pothead , and Steely Dan groupie.
- Niecy Nash as , a loud and boisterous cop who regularly Maces men. She broke up with Jones before the show premiered, but still occasionally answers his Booty Call s. She once joined the Nation Of Islam in order to get the month of Ramadan off. She often yells, "''Hahh''?" after making a blunt statement for effect.
- Cedric Yarbrough as , a black, semi-competent ladies man. He is usually paired with Deputy Garcia. He was raised in Mound, Minnesota , a Suburb of the Twin Cities . It is implied that he is Raineesha's ex-boyfriend, and he is in an on-again, off-again relationship with Clementine. He is also a talented singer and dancer, and works part-time as a Stripper (in a police uniform). Jones commonly uses the expression, "You're a regular Jay Leno ", as a response to a perpetrator making a joke. Other than the initial "S", Jones's first name is never given.
In addition, the cast members frequently play the roles of criminals with censored faces. Kenney-Silver, Lennon and Garant also write and produce the series.
- Terry, the gay Prostitute , played by comedian Nick Swardson , often seen around the jail and other local establishments. He consistently denies any illegal activity, and even tries to misdirect the officers with outlandish tales of bizarre crimes, but his excuses, like his clothes, are flimsy. Typically seen wearing roller skates.
- Chinese Boy, played by Kit DeZolt, a poor Chinese boy who drives the rickshaw
- Jackie, a drug-addictd prostitute with Herpes whose face is always obscured, played by Kerri Kenney.
- Craig, played by Kyle Dunnigan, a shy, convicted serial killer presently on Death Row . Boyfriend and eventual husband of Dep. Trudy Weigel.
- TeeTee, the bra-less and hysterical Black woman whose face is always obscured. Every time she appears, she is screaming nonsensically about something that didn't happen, such as that she has won the lottery. When Garcia and Jones encounter her, she often steals one of their Nightsticks , because the stick reminds her of her father - "really thin and really black." TeeTee is played by Niecy Nash.
- Eric, the Lunatic .
- The French Mime (played by Robert Ben Garant), who is reported to the cops for harassing customers outside a Convenience Store . The mime performs a silent parody of Deputy Garcia, which delights Deputy Jones but enrages Garcia, who then Assault s the mine.
- Andrew, the man that the police periodically visit at his house because of complaints from neighbors.
- Mike Powers, played by Mather Zickel, the former District Attorney responsible for putting the entire Reno Sheriff's Department behind bars at the end of Season 2; he is revealed to be a murderer who Decapitates prostitutes. Powers comes after the cops in Episode 2 of Season 3, after they are released from prison. By the end of this episode he is arrested, but seems to have resolved his issues with the officers of the Reno Sheriff's Department (even assisting Wiegel and Kimball in retrieving some computer files in a subsequent episode).
- Captain Duane Hernandez and Lieutenant Suzy Kim. Hernandez and Kim are criminals who posed as United States Department Of Homeland Security agents in order to get their hands on the Reno Sheriff's Department's money and evidence in the two-part episode " Terrorist Training." Oscar Nunez and Cathy Shim played the duo. Trudy falls for Hernandez in the Plot Arc .
- Steed: Clemmy's criminal ex-husband.
- Unnamed Redneck (played by Robert Ben Garant) with his pants usually down and his penis in an inappropriate object (pumpkin, birdhouse).
- The Puppeteer (played by Jack Plotnick ) who usually appears in a booth that has a flap hiding the fact that his " Magical Snake " is exposed and his pants are down.
- The man in the Delicious Milkshake costume (Nat Faxon), run to his death not by the cops, but by an 18-wheeler . His death led to the Reno deputies' incarceration in season 2.
- Reading Ron (comedian Brian Unger ), a former Children's TV host with a checkered past, who attempted to Profile the Reno Sheriff's Department. However, because of the deputies' incompetence he Relapsed into a Cocaine habit and destroyed his career.
- "Fast Eddie" McLintock, who is a famed Drug Runner and was involved in a high speed chase with the Reno Sheriff's Department (not to apprehend; the deputies only wanted a picture with him). Voiced by Jeff Foxworthy .
- Joe, the Cameraman who is never seen.
- Frisbee (played by Zach Galifianakis ), a White Trash resident of Reno, who lives with his family in an abandoned school bus. Also owns a .30 cal Browning 1919 Machine Gun which he uses to shoot at soda cans, oranges, and UFOs. Deputy Garcia used the gun and accidentially destroyed his squad car. His children are named Chandler , Ross , and Joey .
- The Fire Fighters of the Reno fire department, with whom the cops have an on-going feud. Unlike the sheriff's department, the members of the fire department are competent, popular, respected and do not perform charity work for their own gratification. This leads to feelings of bitterness and inadequacy in the cops, as well as some secret admiration.
- Maria Storm (played by Lisa Lo Cicero ) a local TV reporter who has reported extensively on the Reno Sheriff's department. Frequently hit upon by her male interviewees.
- A group of raucous young women who conduct wild Bachelorette Parties , and repeatedly attempt to lure a male cop to their party to strip for them. On one occasion Deputy Garcia berates them, only to discover Junior and Dangle cavorting with the women in their underwear, boots and gun holsters. On another occasion Deputy Williams arrives, much to the party-goers' disappointment. Williams then Trauma tizes the bride-to-be by drawing attention to her ample waist and posterior and promising that such bodily changes await the party's guest of honor once she becomes a wife and mother.
- Sheriff Walter Chechekevitch, played by Tracey Walter, the deputies' aloof and absentee boss.
- Kenny Rogers , as himself.
- The Reno chapter of the Ku Klux Klan , portrayed as a group of Bigot s trying to end bigotry (by burning lowercase t's for 'tolerance' and opening a lemonade stand with the sign reading 'FREE LEMONADE FOR NIGGERS ')
- Gigg LeCarp , a petty criminal-turned Televangelist who, while hosting a show from the Reno County jail, locked the officers in the same cell where Garcia had beaten him with a nightstick.
- An unnamed geek who plays Dungeons And Dragons , played by Patton Oswalt . Usually someone ends up getting hurt while playing the game (ex. guy gets shot with "magic missile") in which the officers blame the geek but he says it was "Goblin sappers" or something else from D&D.
- Many of the cast members are recognizable from '' The State '', a sketch comedy series which aired on MTV .
- Thomas Lennon and Kerri Kenney-Silver were the stars of a short-lived series on Comedy Central called '' Viva Variety ''. Their co-star, Michael Ian Black , has also appeared in several episodes of ''Reno''. Robert Ben Garant was the creator and head writer of this show, which was a Spin-off of a sketch on ''The State''.
- Wendi McLendon-Covey is a current member of The Groundlings theatre company, located in Los Angeles .
- Carlos Alazraqui is the voice of many cartoon characters, such as Mr. Weed from '' Family Guy '' (from 1999 to 2001), Lazlo from '' Camp Lazlo '', Rocko from '' Rocko's Modern Life '', Monroe the enchanted dog from '' The Life And Times Of Juniper Lee '', and Denzel Crocker from '' The Fairly OddParents ''. He also voiced the Taco Bell Chihuahua .
Principal photography for the ''Reno 911!: Miami'' movie was completed as of March 2006. The movie was shot in Miami (Florida) and Southern California.
